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The Herald & Review Archives
Herald & Review (Decatur, IL)
February 1, 2007
Section: Opinion
Page: A6
Our Views
The right of citizens to gather signatures and place issues on the ballot should be respected. At the same time, the freedom to place items on the ballot also carries a responsibility. A group called Change Decatur wants voters to consider changing the form of city government. Currently, members of the Decatur City Council are elected at-large, and the city operates under a city manager form of government. Change Decatur is proposing a system in which council members are elected from various parts of the city - wards - and they want to change the form of government to one that features a strong mayor. There will be plenty of time and opportunity later to debate the advantages and disadvantages of changing the city’s form of government. For the past few weeks, Change Decatur members have been gathering signatures to place two issues on the April 17 ballot. One would change the way council members are elected from at-large to wards, also known as an aldermanic form of government. The second would have abolished the city manager form of government. On Monday, Change Decatur members submitted about 1,800 signatures to place the aldermanic form of government change on the ballot. If the number of valid signatures is more than 1,553, voters will vote on that issue April 17. The group did not, however, submit any petitions to abolish the city manager form of government. That’s because the group discovered, at the 11th hour, that if the city manager form of government is abolished, the city would revert back to the commissioner form of government. That’s not what Change Decatur had in mind. Change Decatur was right not to submit those petitions, since signers didn’t know exactly what they were supporting. Change Decatur now wants the council to fast track approval so the issue of abolishing the city manager form of government can be placed on the April ballot. Actually, the council would have to place two issues on the ballot: one to abolish the city manager form of government and a second one to abolish the commissioner form of government. They would have to take that action by Feb. 11, and Change Decatur requested on Tuesday that the action be taken at Monday’s city council meeting. Mayor Paul Osborne and City Manager Steve Garman have said that won’t happen because it violates council procedures on how items are approved and doesn’t give the council enough time to study the issue. That’s the right approach by the city. Change Decatur has apparently tried to keep the petition-gathering process relatively low-key. The group has not met with the council, held communitywide meetings or done much to educate the public on what a change in government would mean. Change Decatur is free to choose its strategy. But after a lack of community involvement, it’s unreasonable to expect those elected to represent the city at-large to drop everything and put issues on the ballot simply because Change Decatur didn’t do its homework. The council has no responsibility to correct Change Decatur’s mistake. The foul-up may actually be a blessing in disguise. Changing the form of government is a complicated issue, and having three initiatives on one ballot would have been confusing. With one issue on the ballot, voters can concentrate on what it would mean to change to an alderman form of government and leave the city manager form of government for consideration at a later date.
Copyright, 2007, Herald & Review, Decatur, IL
